Hundreds pay tribute to colleague who died in blaze

Hundreds of firefighters lined the streets of Leicester yesterday to pay tribute to a colleague who died tackling a blaze. Bob Miller, 44, who had two children, fell through the floor of a disused hosiery factory while searching for trapped occupants.

Several hundred firefighters in full dress uniform stood in the rain, heads bowed, as the funeral cortège approached Leicester Cathedral just before 10.30am. The cathedral was filled to capacity with about 1,000 mourners as the Fire Brigade Union announced the first in a series of strikes would go ahead.

Mr Miller's coffin was draped in a Union flag with his medals and helmet and mounted on a fire engine, which led a slow procession through the city. His wife, Jane, his two sons, Scott and Karl, and his parents, Janet and Bill, sat beside his brother and sister at the service, which included a tribute by Chief Fire Officer David Webb, who was with Mr Miller at the scene of the fire in Leicester last month.

He spoke of Mr Miller's bravery and recalled how he had received a commendation for his part in the rescue of three people trapped in a burning building. "Rob, or Bob as he was known within the service, was a big man, not just physically but also as a person. He lost his life doing a job he loved, and working with people he respected, and who respected him," said Mr Webb.

"He was held in high esteem by all of his colleagues and he will be remembered by many of them as a person they most wanted to be paired with at an incident, and he lost his life fully convinced that he was trying to save the lives of others.

"Firefighters are often, and quite rightly, portrayed as heroes and Rob was one of the finest examples of what being a firefighter is all about."

The Dean of Leicester, the Very Rev Vivienne Faull, said: "Nothing that I can say can ease the sense of tragedy. There are no easy answers for the hard questions which haunt us.

"And if today, each of us is reminded of the importance of our partners and our families, if from today, each of us lives our lives more fully, if after today, we give due honour to those in public service, and prize those in our communities who risk their lives for our sakes, then Rob has his memorial."